A Few Words on Copyright

from Jazz Notes 7/2 1995

It occurred to me a while back that a lot of writers may
not know much about the legalities of copyright - I certainly didn't, until
recently. For example, do you know exactly what rights you hold upon the
completion of a review or article, and what rights you give away upon its
publication?

According to "Circular No. 1: Copyright Basics" issued by
the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress, "Copyright protection
subsists from the time the work is created in fixed form; that is, it is an
incident of the process of authorship. The copyright in the work of
authorship immediately becomes the property of the author who
created it. Only the author or those deriving their rights through the
author can rightfully claim copyright." In other words, upon completion of
the work - the moment you lift your pen from the paper, pull the sheet of
paper from the typewriter, or hit the "Save" button on your computer - you
(or your heirs) own all rights to this work now and for the rest of
your life plus 50 years after your death. It is not necessary for you
to file for "official" copyright with the Copyright Office in order to
obtain these rights, they are automatically yours by law. (There are
some advantages to filing for copyright registration - basically in order
to establish a public record of your copyright claim against any future
claims, and in case you anticipate having to take a copyright infringement
case to court. But for the most part, it doesn't affect your rights.)

This is true for all free-lance writers. This is not true
of work which is considered "work for hire" - that is, if the writer
is a (staff) employee of a publication and the work is created or
prepared ". . . within the scope of his or her employment." However, if
you are a free-lance writer and sell your work to a publication, you
are not giving up any rights to that work except for that one specific
printing. After that single printing of your work, you retain all
rights to the work. If the publication (or anyone else) wishes to use
your work again at any time or in any form, it must
obtain your permission and compensate you again in whatever way you
deem necessary. The only way in which you give up any of those rights
is if you sign a contract that specifically states what future rights
you are giving to the publication.

Your work does not need to be published in order to qualify for
automatic copyright protection. Even the manuscript in your drawer or
held in computer memory is protected by copyright. A magazine or
newspaper cannot claim, however, that because you sent them a
manuscript of your work under a (non-written) agreement to publish it
they now own future rights to the work. Furthermore, "Circular No. 1"
states that even though a publication as a whole may be copyrighted by
the publisher, each separate contribution is distinct from such
copyright, "and vests initially with the author of the contribution."
Again, the only way you give up any rights to your work except
for that single printing is if you sign a contract.

All of these rights pertain to work written after 1989, when the
Copyright Act of 1909 was changed. (For information about copyright on
work written before 1989, it's probably best to contact the Copyright
Office, or find a lawyer familiar with both the old and new copyright
laws.) Even though it is not required by law in order to secure
your copyright protection, "Circular No. 1" suggests that it is "highly
recommended" that you place on all of your work a notice of copyright;
for example, 1995 Art Lange, or Copyright 1995 Art Lange. In
addition, the circular states that "There is no such thing as an
'international copyright' that will automatically protect an author's
writings throughout the entire world." For a list of countries which
offer similar copyright protection to those of the U.S., contact the
Copyright Office and request "Circular No. 38a."

This is just a summary of some of the copyright information
contained in "Circular No. 1." To obtain your own free copy
of this circular, along with another catalog of available publications
on copyright, call the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress at
202/707-9100, and ask to receive General Information Package 118.